Downwards accountability and consent in comprehensive assistance missions

Abstract

Peace operations and comprehensive assistance missions rely heavily on retaining local consent; one critical factor in achieving this is the accountability of the mission to the government and people of the country in which it serves. Mechanisms for oversight and review, and processes for handling local input and dissent, may be one way in which an operation can enhance accountability. The difficulty lies in finding ways to ensure that accountability to local actors is just as rigorous as accountability to donors, sponsors and contributing countries.